Ceramic Artists Guild

Monday, September 6th, 2010 at 5:41 am

Brazilian logwood and fustic are famous traditional natural dyes that produce brightly colored wool, cotton and silk brasil yields reds, purples and stick fustic strong yellow dye. These three dyes are made from the heartwood of large trees, medium and originally found in tropical forests. With care appropriate, all three dyes have good light fastness. Eventually, these soft colors more pale, but quite yet.

In late 1500, large quantities of Brazil wood, logwood and fustic were imported to Europe from Latin America. These three new colors cost much less than those previously allowing more people to have colorful clothes.

Brazil

Brazil is both in Asia and Latin America and Brazil takes its name from the tree. The wood comes from several tree species Caesalpinia and gives lovely shades of red.

Even though he was born and raised in Brazil, I never saw a tree brazil never read about the fire that produces red and was never taught that the word comes from Brazil which means grilled Spanish coals. Only when I moved to England and became interested in natural dyes I've learned more about this tree. I was very surprised to learn that my country of birth was named after the wood was there, rather than the reverse.

Brazil, however, was well known for centuries, long before Brazil was discovered by Europeans, was first mentioned as a contrast media in 1321, from the East Indies and India.

Most of Brazil is sold as a contrast now comes from trees in Asia. The species of Brazil, Caesalpinia echinata, also known as Pernambuco and is sometimes referred to as the tree of music because its wood is used for making bows violin.

Campeche

Campeche Tincture Haematoxylon campecianum the heartwood of a tree from the forests of Central America. Haematoxylon blood literally means of wood and refers to the color of the heartwood, while campecianum refers to the city of Campeche in the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico, where this tree was abundant. Campeche was floating in rivers and large logs, hence the name.

Campeche chips produce purple, gray and black, colors depending on the mordant used and the acidity of the dye bath. The hematoxylin dye produced from logwood is still used as histological staining for microscopic slides.

Old fustic

Old fustic, or Mulberry Dyer, is made from the heartwood of Maclura tinctoria, half to large tree of the mulberry family originally found in the forests of Brazil, and the West Indies. This is a beautiful forest of wood turning and is then known as yellow which means yellow in Spanish.

Fustic yields a strong palette of dark yellow color attractive peach silk, cotton and wool and has good lightfastness. It was used extensively from about 1600-1850, since it produces a strong color at low cost. During WW1, fustic was one of the dyes used for produce khaki uniforms for the army.

Stained brazil campeche and fustic

These three dyes are usually sold as wood chips, but are also available as extracts of natural dyes. I prefer to use wood as Brazil and wood chips, as I seem to get a better color in this way. However, I think the extract fustic better than wood chips.

For bright colors, place 50 g of wood chips in a saucepan, cover with boiling water and then leave them overnight. The next day, boil the chips in water for about an hour. You must remove the wood chips before adding fiber because they have small barbs that attach to the fiber and would have to be carefully picked one by one. The best way to remove the chips is to make the dye bath to cool for an hour or two and then pour the contents of the pot through a strainer, saving the liquid. You can also save by spreading sheets to dry, as they can be reused several times. Add 100 g of wool with alum mordanted the dye bath and simmer for 30 minutes. Take the wool and add another 50 grams of colored wool paler. You still might get a little color in more than 50 g wool.

A pinch of iron mordant final color changes, becomes darker brasil and Purple, logwood gray goes greener fustic. A strong dye bath and fustic logwood, along with a pinch of black iron will to produce a deep color, while Brazil and produce an orange fustic fantastic.

Advantages of wood stains

Brazil, logwood dyes and are fustic great for beginners because they are both easy to use and very economical. If you want vibrant tropical colors that evoke the spirit of Brazil and the Caribbean, then Tropical wood dyes are using.

About the author:
Teresinha Roberts is a Brazilian-born textile artist with an MSc in Biology and a City & Guilds in Embroidery. She specialises in natural dyes and is a member of the Guild of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers. Teresinha is regularly invited to talk to weavers, spinners, dyers, embroiderers, botanical and environmental groups, amongst others.

Visit our website at http://www.wildcolours.co.uk today to buy natural dye extracts and to learn more on how grow and use natural dyes.

Karen Thrasher ~ Painter, Glass, Ceramic and Textile artitst from the Big Island of Hawaii